Chapter LXI.—Of the Little Child Whom He Set Before Them for Their Imitation, and of the Offences of the World; Of the Members
of the Body Causing Offences; Of the Angels of the Little Ones, Who Behold the Face of the Father; Of the One Sheep Out of
the Hundred Sheep; Of the Reproving of a Brother in Private; Of the Loosing and the Binding of Sins; Of The Agreement of Two,
and the Gathering Together of Three; Of the Forgiving of Sins Even Unto
Seventy Times Seven; Of the Servant Who Had His Own Large Debt Remitted, and Yet Refused to Remit the Small Debt Which
His Fellow-Servant Owed to Him; And of the Question as to Matthew’s Harmony with the Other Evangelists on All These Subjects.

119. The same Matthew then proceeds with his narrative in the following terms: “In that hour came the disciples unto Jesus,
saying, Who, thinkest Thou, is the greater in the kingdom of heaven? And Jesus called a little child unto Him, and set him
in the midst of them, and said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not
enter into the kingdom of heaven;” and so on, down to the words, “So likewise shall my
heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses.”11081108Matt. xviii. Of this somewhat lengthened discourse which was spoken by the Lord, Mark, instead of giving the whole, has presented only
certain portions, in dealing with which he follows meantime the same order. He has also introduced some matters which Matthew
does not mention.11091109Mark ix. 33–49. Moreover, in this complete discourse, so far as we have taken it under consideration, the only interruption is that which
is made by Peter, when he inquires how often a brother ought to be forgiven. The Lord, however, was speaking in a strain which
makes it quite clear that even the question which Peter thus proposed, and the answer which was returned to him, belong really
to the same address. Luke, again, records none of these things in the order here observed, with the
exception of the incident with the little child whom He set before His disciples, for their imitation when they were thinking
of their own greatness.11101110Luke ix. 46–48. For if he has also narrated some other matters of a tenor resembling those which are inserted in this discourse, these are
sayings which he has recalled for notice in other connections, and on occasions different from the present: just as John11111111John xx. 23. introduces the Lord’s words on the subject of the forgiveness of sins,—namely, those to the effect that they should be remitted
to him to whom the apostles remitted them, and that they should be retained to him to whom they retained them, as spoken by
the Lord after His resurrection; while Matthew mentions that in the discourse now under notice the Lord made this declaration,
which, however, the self-same evangelist at the same time affirms to have been given on a
previous occasion to Peter.11121112Matt. xvi. 19. Therefore, to preclude the necessity of having always to inculcate the same rule, we ought to bear in mind the fact that
Jesus uttered the same word repeatedly, and in a number of different places,—a principle which we have pressed so often upon
your attention already; and this consideration should save us from feeling any perplexity, even although the order of the
sayings may be thought to create some difficulty.